Rib-knitting machine.



J. D. MORLEY. RIB KNITTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 27, 1909. I 1,000,837. Patented Aug. 15, 1911.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

J. D. MORLEY RIB KNITTING MACHINFL uruoumn FILED JULY 21, 1909,. 1,000,837, Patented Aug. 15, 1911. I a BHEETSSHEBT 2 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOSEPH D. MORLEY, OF UTICA, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOB. TO GENERAL ,KNIT FABRIC COMPANY, OF UTICA, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.-

RIB-KNITTING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 15, 1911.

Application filed July 27, 1909. Serial No. 509,838.

To all whom 'it may concern: I

Be it known that I, JOSEPH D. Momma, a citizen of the United States, residlng in Utica, New York. have invented certain Im- No. 925,393, dated June 1:"), 1909, the object of my present invention being to prevent displacement of the stitches upon the needles of the idle set in each needle carrier when the needles of the active set in the other carrier are being advanced so as to engage the knitting yarn. This object I attain in the manner hereinafter set forth, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which i Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view of sufficientof a knitting machine of the type to which my invention relates to illustrate the position of the needles of the two sets at the time that one set of needles is being employed for knitting the web and the other set of needles is idle or outof'action; Fig. 2 is an inverted plan or bottom viewof part of the dial cam ring of the n1acl1ine,'illustrating two of the sets of cams with which said dial cam ring is provided; Fig. 3 is a view showing two sets of cams of the cylinder cam ring developed in a flat ,plane, and Fig. 4 is a transverse vertical section on the line (za, Fig. 2.

The machine, like that o'fthe patent before referred to, is intended for the production of a fabric comprising two ribbed webs interlocked by the crossing of their sinker wales, a needle wale or wales of one web alternating with a needle wale or wales of the other web on each face of the fabric.

The invention is applicable to either straight or circular machines and in the present instance I have illustrated it asapplied to a machine of the circular type as in the former patent. v 1

In Fig. 1 of the drawing, 1 represents the needle cylinder which is vertically grooved for the reception and guidance of its needles and is suitably secured to the fixed base or bed plate of the machine. Surrounding the needle cylinder is a cylindrical cam ring 3 upon whose inner face are mounted cams for lm'parting reciprocatmg movement to the cylinder needles, said cam ring being so cured to a rotatable ring2 to which power may be applied in any of the usual ways.

The needle dial 4 may be mounted as in the' machine of the former patent, or in any other suitable way, and held in stationary relation with the needle cylinder 1 either by the means shown in said patent or other available means, and above the dial is 10- cated the dial cam ring 9 upon whose under face are mounted the cams whereby reciprocating movementis imparted to the needles which are guided in the radially grooved upper face of the dial, said dial cam ring being caused to rotate with the cylinder cam ring in any ordinary way.

\Vhile I have selected, for the purpose of illustrating my invention, a machine of that type in which the needle cylinder and dial are stationary and cooperate with a rotating cylinder cam ring and a rotating dial cam ring, my invention is equally applicable to that type of machine in which these conditions are reversed. the cylinder cam ring and dial cam ring being the stationary elements and the needle cylinder and dial the rotating elements, and the invention is,

as before indicated, applicable to machines carrier in accordance with the character of the ribbed fabric which is to be produced, thus, if each of the ribbed webs is to be a one-and-one web, single needles of each set in one carrier will alternate with single needles of the corresponding set in the other carrier, while if each ribbed web is to be a two-and-two web, pairs of needles of each set in one carrier will alternate with pairs of needles of the corresponding set in the other carrier, other forms of rib requiring, a

corresponding change in the grouping of the needles and their disposal in respect to one another.

In Fig. 1 of the drawing :1: represents one of the needles of one set in the cylinder and y represents one of the needles of the corresponding set in the-dial, as study represent and the needles m and y cooperate at a succeeding yarn feed to produce the other ribbed web, each set of needles being inoperative at the time that the other set is knittin 1%; has been found in practicethat when the needles of one set in one needle carrier are being projected at the knitting point to receive the yarn for knitting one web, they have a tendency to roll the stitches of the other web over the hooks of the inactive needles of the other carrier so that the latter, when in turn projected at their knitting point, sometimes pass through astitch of a' preceding course and thus produce defective web. I find, however, that this tendency can be overcome if the hooks of the idle needlesare drawn some distance inwardly from the,

edge of'the needle carrier in which they are mounted, as shown in Fig. 1, and my invention therefore consists mainly in providing each of the cam rings or cam carriers with means for effecting this retraction of the idle needles during the time that the needles of {{he other set are being projected so asto nit. In Fig. 2, a hold-back cam for one set of dial needles is represented at 10 and a holdback cam for the other'set of dial needles is represented at 11, a hold-back cam for one set of cylinder needles being represented at 12 in Fig.3 and a hold-back cam for the other-set of said cylinder needles being rep resented at 1 3 in said figure. It is also preferable to render the hold back cams adjustable either wholly as at 10 andll in Fig.

- 2, or as to that part which is acting upon the idle needles at the time when the needles of the other set are knitting, as, for instance, at

12 and 13in Fig. 3, and, to facilitate the construction of the camring I make the latter in sections, the ring comprising the central member 9, an intermediate member 15 and anouter member 16, as shown in Fig. 4, the outer member 16 carrying-the outer holdback cam 11, and the intermediate member 15 carrying the inner hold-back cam 10, both .the outer and the intermediate members being secured to the central member 9 in such amanner as to insure the desired rigidity of the ring. The outer hold-back cam 11 is of sectional construction and each-of these sections is secured to the outermost member 16 of the cam ring by'means of a bolt 17 passing through a slot in said member 16 and having a head bearing upon the back of the latter, adjustment being effected by means of a screw 19 adapted to a threaded opening in the outer ring member. In like manner the inner hold-back cam- 10 is secured in order that the latter may be readily accesto. the intermediate member 15 of'the cam ring by means of bolts-20 and is adjusted by means of screws 21 suitably disposed,.the outermost member 16 ofthe cam ring having openings 22 registering with said screws sible Without the necessity of removing the outermost member of the ring. The adj ustable members of the hold-hack earns 12 and 1301 the cylinder cam ring are carried by posts 23 and 24 suitably mounted in said cylindcr "cam ring and adjusted by means of screws 25 which have heads engaging with grooved portions 26 of said-posts, as shown in Fig. 3. The adjustment of the hold-back cams, or portions of the same, provides for the proper control of the position of the idle needles irrespective of the character of yarn which is being used'or the length of stitch which is being drawn by said needles when: they are in action.

While I have shown in the drawings the cams for actuating the needles so as to cause them to knit, I have. not considered it necessary to describe these cams as they constitute no essential part of my invention and may be modified in manyv different wayswithout af'-' footing the performance of their proper functions by those parts of the machine to which my invention actually relates.

I claim: y Y

1. The combination, in a knitting machine 'for producing ribbed fabric, of twoneedle carriers each having two sets of needles,

needle-operating mechanism and a yarn supply cooperating with the needles of one set in each carrier to produce stitches, needleoperating mechanism and a yarn supply cooperating with the needles of the other set in each. carrier to produce other stitches in the spaces between those first produced, and means for withdrawing the hooks of the idle needles in one carrier inwardly beyond the edge of vsaid carrier at the time when the needles of the other carrier are being projected whereby the latter needles are prevented from rolling the stitches over the hooks of the retracted needles of the other set.

2. The combination, in a knitting machine for producing ribbed fabric, ofv two needle carriers each having two sets of needles, needleoperating mechanism and a yarn supply cooperating. with the needles of one set in each carrier to produce stitches, needleoperating mechanism and a yarn supply cooperatingwith the needles of, the other set in each carrier to produce other stitches in the spaces between those first produced, and means 'for withdrawing the hooks of the idle needles in one carrier inwardly beyond the edge of said carrier at thetime whenthe needles of the other carrier are being projected, whereby the latter needles are prevented from rollingthe stitches over the supply cooperating with the needles of one set in each carrier to produce stitches, needleoperating mechanism and a yarn supply cooperating with the needles of the other set in each carrier to produce other stitches in the spaces between those first produced,

a hold-back cam for acting upon the idle needles of one carrier at the time that the needles of the other carrier are being projected, whereby the latter needles are prevented from rolling the stitches over the hooks of the retracted needles of the other set and means for adjusting said hold-back cam so as to vary the position of the hooks I of the idle needles in .respect to the edge of their carrier.

4. The combination,- in a knitting machine for producing a ribbed fabric, of two needle carriers each having two sets of needles,

needle-operating mechanism and a yarn supply cooperating with the needles of one set in each carrier to produce stitches, needle-operating mechanism and a yarn supply cooperating with the needles of the other set in each carrier to produce other stitches in the spaces between those first produced, a hold-back cam foractuating upon the idle needles-of one carrier atthe time thatthe needles of the other carrier are being projected, whereby the latter needles are prevented from rolling the stitches over the hooks of the retracted needles of the other set and means for adjusting said hold-back cam so as to vary the position of the hooks of the idle needles in respect to the edgeof their carrier, said means comprising adjusting screws for shifting the position of the hold-back cam and locking bolts for securing said hold-back cam in its adjusted position.

5. The combination, in a knitting machine for producing ribbed fabric, of two needle carriers'each having two sets of needles, needle-operating mechanism and a yarn supply cooperating with the needles of one set in each carrier to produce stitches, needle-operating mechanism and a yarn supply cooperating with the needles of the other set in each carrier to-produce other stitches in the sp es between those first produced, hold-b k cams for retaining the idle needles in o e carrier when the active needles in the-0t er carrier are being projected, whereby th ,latter needles are prevented from rollin the stitches over the hooks of the retracted needles of the other set and a cam ring comprising members detachable from one another, one member carrying the holdback cam and adjusting devices for one set of needles and the other member carrying the hold-back cam and adjusting devices for the. other set of needles.

In testimony whereof, I have signed .my name'to this specification, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

HAMILTON D. TURNER, KATE A. BEADLE. 

